Pre (Steve Prefontaine) was there from '70-'73, so it's been over 45 years. The men's track team at Oregon had already won three NCAA outdoor titles back in the 60's, so they were a bit of an established power by the time he arrived (though, of course, he put them at another level).

Eugene is such a hotbed for T&F though, and it's hard to say how much of that he is responsible for. They are going to host the World Championships for track in 2021, and they are completely tearing down their stadium (the iconic Hayward Field, which has hosted numerous NCAA championships, USA national meets, Olympic Trials, etc. Trivia: It's also where they filmed the ROTC scene in Animal House). They (well, Phil Knight and Nike) are going to spend something like $200M on a track stadium! (it was supposed to be $60M, but the last I saw they are way over budget).

It's hard to imagine that if Pre (or someone like him) came to VT in the 1970's or now, that it would cause anything more than a temporary spike in interest around the program. However, if someone like Phil Knight wanted to plow $100M (or whatever) into the VT T&F program to get top notch facilities, and to attract the best coaches, VT would immediately be a top 5 program in the country.